Palatines
Historic flag of the Palatinate | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| The Palatinate. Emigré settlements in: Ireland (initially, in Counties Limerick and Wexford) and North America – including Pennsylvania Dutch Country, Germantown PA, New York State and Maryland. | |
| Languages | |
| Palatine German, Pennsylvania Dutch | |
| Religion | |
| Roman Catholic, Lutheran, German Reformed | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Fancy Dutch, Pennsylvania Dutch, German Americans, Hessians, Maryland Palatines |
Palatines (Palatine German: Pälzer) were the citizens and princes of the Palatinates, Holy Roman States that served as capitals for the Holy Roman Emperor. After the fall of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the nationality referred more specifically to residents of the Rhenish Palatinate, known simply as "the Palatinate".
American Palatines, including the Pennsylvania Dutch, have maintained a presence in the United States as early as 1632 and are collectively known as "Palatine Dutch" (Palatine German: Pälzisch Deitsche). The earliest Palatines settled in the Maryland Palatinate, an American palatinate established by the Calvert family as a haven for Catholic refugees.